Folks,

My normally reliable 1990 745 GLE 16 Valve died on the highway recently. No warning. All the gauges pegged to the left and the engine lost spark. Battery was dead (year 2 of a 6 year warranty on the battery). The battery failed the Canadian Tire battery test (internal overheating) so they replaced it free of charge and I was on my way. Next day, the car died again. There were no warning lights showing up on the dash. Hmmmmm.... I did the 'key on' test which should have lit up all the warning bulbs. Less than 1/2 lit up. Notably, the battery warning light was off. What the....? I unscrewed the diode pack from the alternator and found that the contact area on the pack was rusted over. The flat spring contact on the alternator was also rusted. I cleaned them and applied a bit of contact grease and I was back in business. Now all the warning bulbs light up for the 'key on' test. Right as rain ever since.

After the fact, I recalled that some years ago I noted that this contact could get rusty and I made a mental note at that time to check this once in a while. Then I forgot all about it. Now I have a WRITTEN note in my maintenance book to clean the contacts annually.

I suspect most Volvos of this era have a similar setup. Better check yours since when the contact falts to an open circuit, the alternator warning light does not light up. And it would pay to observe the warning bulbs when you start the car in the morning. Just in case.

Anyone know if there is a voltmeter available that fits into one of the blanked spots in the dash?

Bill